Chicago Bears roster: Position group previews ahead of training camp

Chicago Bears Cornerbacks

The Chicago Bears cornerbacks unit went through a big change over the offseason. Gone is former All-Pro cornerback Kyle Fuller. He was a surprise cut after the team tried and failed to redo Fuller’s contract.

The Bears went out and signed Desmond Trufant. Trufant is a pretty good cornerback when he is on the field. The problem is that he hasn’t seen the field much lately. He’s only played 15 games in the past two seasons and his production dropped because of injuries. The Bears hope they can get a good season out of him.

Jaylon Johnson was having a pretty good rookie season before he missed the last three regular-season games and the playoff game. Of course, being a rookie he had his moments of struggles. He did a good job of defending passes most of the time, but he did give up too many big plays against him. If he was a little more consistent and avoided some of those big plays his numbers would be a great deal better. He finished with an impressive 15 passes defended.

Johnson is ready to take the mantel of CB1. He worked hard in the offseason and feels ready to take Fuller’s spot as the top cornerback.

There are plenty of backup defensive backs who look to make an impression on the coaches. Chicago might have had the steal of the draft by having Thomas Graham Jr.fall on their laps.

Graham was ranked as a top-100 prospect in the draft (No. 76 to be exact). He had a good Pro Day and had no red flags. In fact, his coaches raved about his leadership. However, he decided to opt-out of the 2020 season and that might have cost him big. The Bears got him late, and now they have a player with a chip on his shoulder.

Artie Burns is trying to save his career. The Bears signed him last year to start but a torn ACL in training camp ended that plan. Now he’s trying to make the roster in any way. Also, the Bears have Duke Shelley ready to finally break out. In minicamp, their second-year guy Kindle Vildor opened a lot of eyes. If he continues to do well, he could end up with either a CB2 or CB3 starting spot.

The cornerbacks unit is in flux right now. However, they have plenty of good, young players who can make that unit one of the strongest in the league.